Composer of the Month 9/2012: Alphons Diepenbrock (selected by Peter van Dessel / Belgium)

Netherlands 17.6.1935 The video shows the Netherlands "Radio Philharmonic Orchestra" under the direction of Edward Gardner performing the overture to incidental music "De vogels" by Aristophanes, composed in 1917. The concert was recorded at the Great Hall of the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam on 18-12-2011. The Dutch composer Johannes Maria Diepenbrock Alphonsus was born on 2 September 1862 in Amsterdam. As a child he received piano and violin lessons and wanted to be a conductor. But then he studied classical philology, taught old languages for several years and wrote magazine articles on topics from music, literature, art and politics. As a composer Diepenbrock was self-taught. His first major work, a mass for tenor, male choir and organ, he published the 1896. Since the premiere of his Te Deum (1902), he was considered the leading Dutch composer of his time. The Dutch conductor Willem Mengelberg championed the music of Diepenbrock. There also was an amicable contact with Gustav Mahler. Diepenbrock's music belongs to the late Romantic period. He composed piano and orchestral songs, choruses, sacred music and several drama and stage music. Initially his style was influenced by Richard Wagner and later by the French Impressionists. For several works he also used elements from the vocal polyphony of the 16th Century. Diepenbrock Alphonsus died on 5 April 1921 in Amsterdam. In September 2012, we commemorate his 150th birthday. More composer can be found in the members only section